Advance Planning Division

The Advance Planning Division is responsible for developing and implementing Culver City's long-term vision, values, and goals through land use and policy planning. To do this and understand and address opportunities and issues affecting the community and region, Advance Planning partners with the community, other City Departments, boards, and commissions; and local, regional, and state agencies.

Please refer to the Current Planning Division if you have questions on planning permit applications, forms, and development projects.

Advance Planning Projects

General Plan 2045

Culver City community members are creating a new vision and guiding principles for the city's future. This initiative, a comprehensive update to the General Plan, will result in new long-range planning documents that work together to maintain Culver City's uniqueness and create opportunities to improve how we manage every aspect of the city—including economic growth, transportation, housing, climate change, and more.

The General Plan process began in 2019 and included an extensive outreach and visioning process that resulted in the project's Vision, Values and Guiding Principles. After determining a preferred direction with guidance from community members, City Council, Planning Commission, and the General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC), the project team worked to develop the twelve elements that will make up the new General Plan. 

The Public Review Draft General Plan will be available for review in late September 2023, with additional outreach events and opportunities for members of the public to share their thoughts and comments throughout the fall. Visit the project website for more information, and subscribe for email updates and meeting/event notifications.

General Plan 2045 - Culver City

Zoning Code Update

Culver City is undertaking a focused update to its Zoning Code and zoning map to help implement the draft Culver City General Plan 2045 (currently in progress). The update of the Zoning Code is intended to support the city’s growth in an orderly manner and promote and protect the public’s health, safety, peace, comfort, and general welfare in conformance with the General Plan. The following are objectives of the Code update:

  • Update the Zoning Code to implement the land use patterns and development framework established in the Culver City 2045 General Plan Update.
  • Update the zoning map with zoning districts that implement and are consistent with the General Plan land use designations.
  • Update the development regulations, processes, and procedures in the Zoning Code to be consistent with the General Plan and recent changes to State law.

The Zoning Code Update schedule will run concurrently with the remainder of the General Plan process, and is planned to be adopted with or shortly after the General Plan.

Learn more about the Zoning Code Update on the Picture Culver City project website, where you can find the Zoning Code Fact Sheet and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Zoning Code Update Logo and City Hall aerial photo

The Culver City General Plan is the umbrella document that allows the City to plan for future development. The General Plan’s intent is to set the City’s goals for development approvals and the built environment, land use ground rules, and give the public the chance to participate in the City’s planning process. Every City decision and document regulating the built environment, including the zoning code, has to be consistent with the General Plan.

The City is comprehensively updating its General Plan. Find out more about the General Plan Update!

Existing General Plan Elements and Map

Overview

General Plan Overview(PDF, 762KB)
Summarizes the physical, social, and economic needs of the City and its people.

Map

Land Use Element Map(PDF, 1002KB)
Delineates land use boundaries, which are further defined by the City's Zoning Code.

Elements

Land Use Element(PDF, 8MB)
Designates general distribution, intensity, and development policies regarding residential, commercial, industrial, open space, and institutional uses in the city.

Circulation Element(PDF, 3MB)
Identifies transportation systems and facilities following the land use element.

2021-2029 Housing Element(PDF, 3MB) and Appendices(PDF, 31MB)
Identifies and prioritizes the city's housing needs and outlines the goals, policies, and programs to address those needs.

Open Space Element(PDF, 2MB)
Identifies ways to support, protect, enhance, and expand natural habitats, agricultural production, and outdoor recreation and environmental health uses.

Noise Element(PDF, 2MB)
Identifies land uses sensitive to noise and noise sources. It also defines areas of noise impacts to limit the community's exposure to excess noises.

Conservation Element(PDF, 344KB)
Identifies ways to conserve and use natural resources, such as water and its hydraulic force, forests, soils, rivers, harbors, fisheries, wildlife, and minerals.

Seismic Element(PDF, 1MB)
Identifies and appraises seismic hazards like susceptibility to surface ruptures from faulting, ground shaking, ground failures, and/or the effects of seismically induced waves like tsunamis and seiches.

Public Safety Element(PDF, 1MB)
Identifies and defines programs to protect the community from fire and geologic hazards.

Recreation Element(PDF, 1MB)
Describes the community's relationship with and needs for park and recreation areas, facilities, and programs.

Development-Related City Documents

Advance Planning Division staff compiled a list of City of Culver City documents related to development to prepare for the General Plan Update (GPU). This list is not comprehensive but represents important milestones and key documents related to Culver City's development. Considering these related documents while updating the general plan ensures the GPU is consistent with these documents and the goals and policies they outline.

 

 

Division Staff